Tuesday, August 10, 2010

After a so-so year in the Turkish Super Lig scoring 5 goals in 15 appearances for Diyarbakirspor; Andres Mendoza, 32, will try to get back into his Morelia form of 2008-2009 with a new side, the brighter yellow of the Columbus Crew. The 6'2 Mendoza scored 13 goals for Morelia in 27 appearances and will look to transfer that success to the Crew; as the Crew battle down the stretch in MLS and battle Mexican side Santos Laguna in Group B of the Champions League starting August 18th.

Mendoza will be the only true, left-footed striker on the Columbus team, giving the Crew the option to play two up top in front of Schelotto. However, a three pronged attack is unlikely until the Crew are completely healthy in the back.

Still the thought of Schelotto feeding a Mendoza-Renteria combination up top is enticing; Well, if the Crew can ever break away from always having to play two defensive midfielders.

The Mendoza deal was announced officially on the Crew website this Monday. Columbus will be hoping that Mendoza and his 5 more years of experience will lead to better results than how the Crew's experiment with Sergio Herrera turned out. The Crew were hoping that Herrera, a 28 year old Colombian striker with good international and club experience, could turn out to be that major striker and that turned into a flop; Columbus cannot likely afford another flop if they look to win multiple trophies this year.

Therefore, hopefully at 32 Mendoza is looking to settle down, grow some roots, and score some goals in one place, Columbus. The globetrotter has had some varied success, either scoring by the boatload at multiple times in his career or making a fleeting, uninspiring appearance at a club. The Crew will be hoping that Mendoza makes the first impression and if he does so, maybe Mendoza will stick around longer than he usually does.